Newbie, first post...How long for fatigue improvement?

Newbie here, been using my CPAP for about a month now. It's a face mask as I'm a mouth breather, but there hasn't been much trouble for me to adapt to the mask. I'm not certain I breath through my nose all the time, but I do position the mask as to push somewhat up on my lower jaw, and do consciously try to breath through my nose. I had an issue a couple of days with rubbing on the bridge of my nose (thank you FAQs), and I also felt even worse a few days due to "sleep inertia" (thank you again FAQs). I took the advice and downloaded the SleepCycle app for my Android phone. A few times the phone got under the edge of my pillow and didn't provide valid data, but I've worked that out for the most part. The app has helped me greatly to see my sleep cycles and REM sleep ( I had zero REM sleep during my first sleep study). I have been waking up about 8:30AM fairly regularly the past week, and it does seem that I've already seen my body clock move in the morning to a more normal time (7:30AM-9:00AM) that the 10:30AM-11AM time I have been waking up. Night is a different story. I still don't get to sleep until 2AM-3AM, which, of course, doesn't make for enough hours of sleep. So any suggestions for me to get to sleep earlier (get in bed earlier, ha ha ) , are more than welcome. The app has helped me from waking up in the middle of REM sleep , which made me feel even worse than I had been feeling in the morning. So, overall, I've had a pretty decent experience this first month.

A Cliff Notes on my health background,etc. I"m 57 and contracted Lyme Disease in about 1993. I live in Houston, TX, which was far from endemic areas at that time, and was seen by at least 30 doctors who misdiagnosed me over 4 years until my brain was infected and I had to go on disability and was bedridden. I had been diagnosed with CFS or "it's all in your head", but when I filed for disability I was *finally* tested for Lyme Disease. I was highly positive on both tests, with at least 5 bands on the Western Blot. During this time period I did have one sleep study which showed only slight to moderate sleep apnea and didn't recommend any treatment. About 5-7 years after that I had another one, which came up with the same results. Since then I have stabilized, due to working out, watching my weight, therapy, eating right (well, most of the time). I have worked part-time some, but the best I've ever felt is perhaps 70% of normal.

I got a new cardiologist a few months back because my old one retired about 2.5 years ago. I had some heart damage due to Lyme Disease, but due to being healthy, at the time of her retirement ,she said my heart was in better shape now when I first saw her 15 years ago. But, I needed to have a new cardiologist, and it was time to do all the tests, which took over 6 hours, he did all the tests I needed and I got a big thumbs up from him on my cardio health. But he did say that it seemed from his interview with me that I had sleep apnea. I told him of my two previous sleep studies but he convinced me that the science had come a long way since my last study (probably 2000). I did the first study, did the second study with a mask and testing different pressures and woke up at 5:30AM and felt better than I had in a LONG time!

If you've been with me this far, I'll come to my big question. I've been sick for about 20 years with Lyme Disease, and the problems it caused, i.e., sleep problems, dysfunctional immune system that causes me to have a lot of allergies and sensitivities, etc. THE question is...generally, how long will it take me to notice and feel permanent effects from the use of the CPAP? Again, it seems it already is helping me with my body clock in the AM. Do I feel better? Not really. I take Adderall for energy in the AM , and I still do. BUT, the SleepCycle app says I'm getting REM sleep, and the measure of Sleep Quality is erratic, but I assume it will get better over time.

I'm just wondering how much time before I look at myself and decide that the CPAP has done all it can do to make me feel better, and, if I"m still fatigued, that it must be the other complications that Lyme Disease has caused. in a perfect world, the CPAP would solve all my fatigue problems in a few months and life will be all sunshine and puppy dogs. But, anyone's input on this would be greatly appreciated!

And I promise to make any further inquiries shorter (I know I need a personal editor:) )

Let's assume that your symptoms care entirely due to Sleep Apnea. Of course that might not be the case, so bear that in mind, too.

Some patients (such as myself) feel the difference almost immediately and can't miss it. Some feel it gradually over time so don't notice it as much. In fact, many patients insist that CPAP is not helping, discontinue use, and then report that they "feel worse that ever." In those cases, they didn't really notice the improvement until they reverted back to feeling rotten again.

Hi- and welcome.
I will give you my personal experience. I'm 59, in good health otherwise. I was feeling old and run down before cpap. I had insomnia, told my husband "I never sleep", He said I sleep all night because he hears me snoring all night. Was having heart 'thuds' that I was told were extra beats. And had zero energy, dizzy spells, brain fog,etc.. I got diagnosed with sleep apnea almost 2 yrs. ago. Got my cpap and had no problems getting used to using it every night.
The first week, I felt like I was getting some rest, finally. The first month or so, I was having weird nightmares and actually dreaming.
After the first 2-3 months, I was feeling like my energy was coming back.
After the first year, my brain fog was much improved. I actually mentioned this part to my sleep Dr. He said "It takes 6 months on cpap for the brain to recover".
Well, it's been close to 2 yrs now on cpap. And I feel amazing.

I had my 6 month PCP check up yesterday. All good news. I have lost 10 lbs, because I have the energy to do things now. My BP is better,(It was never too high). My heart "thuds" don't wake me up. The Dr. asked my if I use my cpap. I told him I love it.
All I can say is- use your cpap. Don't expect any drastic "I feel better" in a week events. It takes time for your body to recover. How many years of damage from apnea have we all suffered?
So after 1 yr and 9 months, I feel like I'm getting back to where I should be.

What you want to do is download (free) Sleepyhead software - see the 1st Tutorial top of the home pg here. It gives many parameters of what goes on when you sleep and if you post the reports here we can see what's going on and possibly suggest tweaks to e.g. pressure settings or point out potential problems. You'd download the graphs etc. to Imgur.com and then leave a link in this thread so we can follow your story. Leave out the calendar on the left side to make room for results list below it... the graphs will appear on the right.

My one question;
If your first sleep study showed "slight to moderate sleep apnea" - why did that Dr. recommend No treatment? That doesn't sound right to me AT ALL. Either you have SA or your don't. If you have it, even slight, you need cpap.

Cardsfan wrote:My one question;
If your first sleep study showed "slight to moderate sleep apnea" - why did that Dr. recommend No treatment? That doesn't sound right to me AT ALL. Either you have SA or your don't. If you have it, even slight, you need cpap.

Bear in mind that some people who suffer "mild or moderate" sleep apnea experience symptoms that are genereally associated with "severe" sleep apnea.

I have been using my Bipap for 9 months. I feel fatigued most days but am seeing improvement. I don't wake up numerous times at night with my heart pounding. I am a light sleeper, so I think that is why it's taking me so long to get to where I have more energy. My family says I'm much better. So stick with it! I am and hope to improve day by day. Good luck to you!

Thanks for the responses so far. I was misdiagnosed for at least four years by over 30 doctors about my Lyme Disease. If only *one* of those doctors had said,"Hey, not much Lyme Disease in Texas, but let's just make sure that's not what it is since no one can figure it out", I would have been given oral antibiotics for 4-6 weeks, and my life would have continued much as normal, and I wouldn't have had my life destroyed. So, the fact that doctors didn't recommend a CPAP years ago is not big surprise. I have little respect for physicians as their arrogance and lack of knowledge put me in this position. So nothing they do or don't do surprises me, and I question them heavily whenever I see one now (they don't like that very much ). But , I've discovered that doctors know very little much of the time and they don't deserve the blind respect they get. And old girlfriend was told she had MS a couple of years after I found out I had Lyme Disease, but I had worked with the MS Society as a volunteer when I lived in New Orleans and she didn't exhibit any of the symptoms I observed in the MS patients there. She was depressed, thought she was going to be in a wheelchair, etc. I found a neurologist that used to be in the Army, and was not connected to Big Pharma and the expensive MS medications. He spoke with her, gave her the basic MS tests, then held up a piece of paper and said, "This is a list of MS symptoms. You have none of them". He did suggest she had a nerve system disorder called Transverse Myelitis. Sure enough, after Google, she fit the diagnosis as she had a MMR vaccination, a stressful vacation where she was supposed to get married, and then returned home and collapsed, which is one of the main ways Transverse Myelitis is contracted. She was lucky. I wasn't. I wasn't diagnosed and given ANY antibiotics until over four years after I started getting sick. Sorry for the long explanation, but doctors are more often wrong than right, and I'm always skeptical (now) over what they tell me.

Keep a daily journal of how you feel. A lot of results from cpap therapy are very subtle and until you look back at what you wrote you won't realize how different you feel. There can be subtle shifts on mood and perception and cognitive ability. Some may take 3- 12 moths to be noticeable.

Also remember that fatigue is only one symptom of sleep deprivation and the most obvious one.

A couple of other notes. I use the SleepCycle app on my phone (which gives me useful info), but I'll download the SleepHead software also and use it.

Sorry, haven't quite figured out how to save and put everything in one post yet but will. Don't worry, I realize the CPAP works well, and I wear it all the time, even naps. I know now that it will take a LONG time, but if I feel better, even somewhat, and not 100%, it will be worth it. I"ve already discontinued a small dose of BP medication, as with my fatigue level, my primary physician has always told me that I'm the last person that needs my BP too low, and the CPAP will lower my BP further. So I will have to monitor items like that to see if I need to modify medications. Thanks!

SleepyHead gives waaay more info than 'apps' which is why everyone here uses it.

I had to get other health issues under control before CPAP really started to work for me.

What is your treated ahi?

I'm afraid I don't know what a "treated ahi" Is.